To Whom It May Concern
by Couragefan09
Summary: Katz captures Courage with the intent of putting him through one final 'game'. Blinded and nearly helpless, Courage will have to rely on his computer's guidance to get him through the games. Computer himself has been promised that if he lets Courage die he too is in for a sticky end. They can hardly stand to work together but they have no choice or else they will die trying...
1. Introduction Log

To Whom It May Concern

* * *

Introduction Log

I'm not quite sure how to start this. Where am I supposed to even begin? How is one supposed to go about chronicling their own impending doom?

I fear that I don't have much time left. This little writing endeavor of mine will most likely never be found by anyone, but I feel compelled to write anyway. What was that one saying? The compulsion to keep writing even as one is being devoured? Well I suppose I would prefer being eaten alive by a cosmic horror more so then suffering a fate like this one.

This is my one and only means of rebellion. Even if it is only a small hope that someone, _anyone_, might one day read this, then maybe I have won in my own meager way. We will ultimately die playing this pathetic little game but we will not be forgotten for it. When I die these files will most likely be lost, but I cling to the hope that a human will come along and find a way to extract these files from me, regardless of what condition I might be in.

I'm sure whoever might be reading this has probably already realized that I'm not exactly human by now. I am not one of you organic creatures, I am a machine, and probably the machine you've just dug these files out of. I have no name with which to call myself but I've never cared much for names anyway. I am programmed with a predominately male personality but I am technically genderless. Up until now I've been living on a farm in the middle of nowhere, and that's not just a figure of speech, this place really is called the 'Middle Of Nowhere'. It's essentially one big desert. It's boring, dry, and practically abandoned. Any sane individual would know better then to settle down in a place like this so of course Nowhere is left inhabited by the weirdest sort of people and the strangest kinds of creatures you can imagine.

The farm I lived on was also inhabited by an old couple and their dog. I'm afraid I don't have enough time to go into every minute detail about my life on the farm but I'll try sum up this up as quickly as possible. A lot of weird things happen around here, and I don't mean the mundane kind of weird either. We get everything from seductive water demons to demented barbers around here. The old couple, Eustace and Muriel, are about as helpless as chickens running around with their heads cut off. It's usually up to their dog, Courage, the most annoying and scrawny little creature I've ever met, to save their lives from the oddities that show up on their doorstep. 'The twit', as I normally call the dog, always comes to me for help and as much as I dislike wasting my intellect on things like evil snowmen and alien ducks, this was my lot in life. I never thought I would see the day that I would wish I could go back to that.

Courage has made a lot of enemies over the years but only one has been so persistent in trying to kill him. It's funny how many times the dog has 'accidentally' messed up his plans. I'm sure this game of his has been a long time coming. Courage has caused him so many humiliating defeats by now I'm surprised he hasn't taken a more proactive approach sooner. I just wish he hadn't added me into the equation...

I can't continue right now. The task ahead requires my full devotion if the twit is going to survive. I'm sure if someone is reading this right now the rest of the logs are around to read, IF there are any other logs of course. I can't say for certain that I'll live long enough to write the rest of this. If I do make it that far, I hope the rest of this story can be salvaged. I've done everything I can to make sure that these files might one day be found. I can only hope that they will endure my death but I've never put much stock in hope and hope isn't a commodity that is easy to afford at times like these.


	2. Second Log

Second Log

I initially had no idea that anything was wrong when my power switch was flicked on. Everything seemed normal at time and I went through all the normal boot up processes without a single issue.

Oh boy, if only I had known...

The first thing that tipped me off to the fact that something wasn't right was when I noticed that the twit wasn't typing frantically away at my keyboard. In all the years I'd known him I could not remember a single time where I had woken up and _not_ had the twit pounding away at my keyboard. If he wasn't panicking about something then something had to be _seriously_ wrong. I couldn't imagine what was keeping him from freaking out like usual but I knew that it couldn't be anything good.

Perhaps a monster had finally gotten his beloved Muriel? Maybe now he was coming to me in a vain attempt to save her? Or perhaps he had been captured and now was being forced to try and make me do something for whoever was keeping him hostage. What if it wasn't the twit at all? I'd hate to imagine what other sort of person I could get stuck with if something had finally taken out the dog for good.

I let my screen come to life, curious to find out what was going on. My fear was almost immediately confirmed. Gone was the dull attic wall I was so used to seeing and replaced with it was an even more dull, gray, and featureless stone wall. Something was seriously wrong indeed.

Had I been stolen? Did the dog even know I was gone? What would become of me in the hands of a thief? Maybe the farm had been destroyed again? Perhaps the twit and his family hadn't survive whatever supernatural threat that had been thrown at them this time.

I normally didn't have an awareness of the passing of time while I'm shut down. For all I knew years could have passed since the last time I was turned off. I quickly brought up my internal clock to help me get my bearings and was relieved to find that only a month had passed since the last time I had spoken with the twit. It wasn't unusual for him to leave me like that for months on end. Enough time had certainly gone by for something bad to have happened and it was certainly enough time for the farm to have been looted of any valuables _if _something had really gone wrong. I could very easily be in the hands of a thief or worse.

Another thought crossed my mind. What if that twit had given me away? Would that idiot really be so stupid as to give me away? He liked to make threats but I'd never thought he'd actually go through with something like that. Our last chat had gotten particularly heated but I didn't think he'd actually go through with it and finally get rid of me.

Explanations ran through my processor but none of them were anything more then just speculation. What on earth was going on? Someone had to have pressed the button to wake me up, so why weren't they in front of my monitor? Even a thief would make an effort to at least try out the new computer they had procured. Whoever was now in possession of me couldn't possibly know about my sentience, so why were they not showing themselves? Could the twit have said something about me? That didn't seem likely.

I almost instinctively reached out for my internet connection. I knew that it wouldn't hold any of the answers I was looking for but it was my only connection to the outside world. It was obviously quite a start when I found that it was gone. It wasn't just the lack of a signal either. Whoever now had me in their captivity had gone through and removed the programming that allowed me to receive an internet connection all together. My mind reeled as I tried to figure this all out. This made absolutely no sense! How could someone remove or modify my programming without me knowing that it was happening? Why would anyone want to deprive me of an internet connection in the first place?

I considered the possibly of uttering a small 'hello' to get my new owner's attention, but I ultimately decided against it. There was still the possibility that this person did not know of my sentience. It was fairly unlikely now considering that they had gone through and modified my programming without my consent, but there was still some small chance that they did not and I wasn't going to squander it over some stupid greeting.

Almost as if sensing my thoughts, a cold, drawling voice spoke up from somewhere just outside of my field of vision. "Welcome!" The voice spoke. "I've given you some time to reorient yourself to your new surrounding and now I believe it is time for the 'fun' to begin."

I couldn't help but think _'Great, just great!'. _I knew this couldn't be good. One did not speak in a tone like that unless they were planning on being antagonistic. Whoever had gotten a hold of me knew of my existence and it was obvious that they were not planning on being friendly.

I groaned inwardly knowing that whatever was about to happen was not going to be 'fun' as he put it. Even more questions began to bombard my processor and I had a bad feeling that none of them were going to be answered. What the heck had happened to the twit and his family to land me with a person like this?

"Excuse me?" I asked in a bored tone. I wasn't about to give whoever this was even the slightest chance to get the better of me. I was going to make sure that he knew who he was dealing with and I was not going to go down without a fight, no matter what he was about to do to me.

The response I was given was an amused laugh from the cold voice.

"Uh huh, laugh, you're really funny you know." I replied sarcastically. This person was starting to annoy me more than anything else.

"You are the funny one!" The voice replied merrily. "If you had any idea what was about to happen to you, you'd think you are quite funny too! That attitude of yours isn't going to remain much longer I'm afraid..."

"What did you do?" I asked, unable to hide some of my growing anger. "You messed around with my programming and I don't take kindly to being meddled with!"

Another laugh from the voice. "I merely added some tools that you will be needing for the tasks you are about to face. I also had to make certain that you cannot contact the outside world. The last thing any of us would want is the police showing up to ruin our little game."

He added new tools to my programming? Some kind of task ahead? Keeping the police out of a game? Lovely, this was just the sort of thing I didn't want to hear...

I did a quick search through my programming and did indeed find several other changes outside of my missing internet connection. I took a look through several of the new files that had been added to my system and found what seemed to be live cameras. I could see several places all around what looked like Nowhere. Just what the heck was this supposed to mean? What was I supposed to do with something like this? The places I could see seemed to be uninhabited and fairly dangerous. They were parts of Nowhere that people rarely venture into, and if they did they'd have to be very careful. I could see several large ravines that were probably deep enough to kill anyone who'd be stupid enough to fall in. It would be difficult to navigate unless you knew what you were doing.

"What exactly is all this supposed to be? I asked. "What are you planning on doing?"

The voice laughed yet again. "This isn't about what _I_ will be doing, it's about what _you _will be doing."

I heard the soft pattering of footsteps and the owner of the voice finally revealed himself. He leered down at me with a calm and collect grin. Had I been anyone else I probably would have been quivering under such a vicious yet oddly calm stare. I knew who he was almost immediately. I'd never met him in person but I knew who he was through description alone. He was Katz.

He was the one who had tried to kill Courage so many times before. Of all the enemies the dog had made over the years, Katz was the one who was the most persistent at trying to get his revenge. The twit had talked about him a lot and from the sound of it Katz was a complete manic. From feeding people to monstrous spiders, to attempted mass murder for his own gain, this cat cared nothing for other lives and now I was in his possession with no means of escape...

Had he finally done it? Had he finally killed Courage? Was he planning on making me his next victim or was he planning on having me do something for him instead? Either way, I was probably dead, there was no getting around that. Unless the twit was still around and actually planning on helping me I was as good as gone.

"You must be Katz." I replied. I made no effort to sound impressed. I wasn't about to let this idiot faze me. If I was doomed to die then at least I wasn't going to let him get any pleasure out of it.

Pity." The cat replied running a claw down one of his whiskers. "Here I was hoping to introduce myself and you already know who I am."

"Charmed." I grumbled.

"I suppose I don't need to ask who you are." The cat replied. "I would say that you would have made a wonderful ally had you not thrown your lot in with that dog. Such a waste of talent if you ask me."

"What? Are you trying to recruit me or something?" I asked, thoroughly unimpressed.

"I'm afraid that you are no longer salvageable. It's because of you that dog is still alive and I refuse to forgive you for that. If you had given him the wrong information just once, we could have been rid of that dog once and for all. I suppose I should thank you for it though. Because of you I will be the one to have the pleasure of killing him. Well, I should say the pleasure of killing both of you actually..."

So the twit really was still alive. That's at least one question out of the way. We're both going to die of course, but still...

"If you're planning on killing me then why haven't you done it yet? You've had plenty of time to kill me off so rather than bore me with your theatrics why don't you just get it over with?"

The cat pulled out a chair and sat down in front of me. He brought his feet up and let them rest on my keyboard. It took every bit of effort on my part not to yell at him. How dare he! How dare he just use my keyboard like a common foot rest! The look on his face at that moment was so smug that _anyone _would have wanted to reach over and punch him for it. Alas, I was not capable of such feats but I would have loved to do nothing more. I might have even sawed his feet off for daring to let them touch my keyboard.

"I've decided to play one last game with my ever faithful nemesis." The cat drawled, running another claw down one of his whiskers. "I've noticed how many times you've helped him and I know that he's only alive today because of you. I figured that since you have so much _fun _saving his life that I'd let you do it one last time..."

"You're just going to kill him then?" I asked. It was a stupid thing to say but what other choice did I have?

He removed his feet from my keyboard and leaned in until his malicious eyes met my screen. "The only one who will be killing him is _you_."

"Every choice, every minute decision you are about to make will decide whether he lives or dies. The only thing that will kill him is you, if you make a mistake." He leaned in even closer and his grin grew even more malicious." But you don't make mistakes, do you?"

If I had eyes to roll I would have done so. "Stop being so melodramatic."

The smile faded a little from Katz's mouth, much to my satisfaction. He waved a hand impassively. "I'd take this a little more seriously if I were you. You won't be able to keep that attitude up for long I'm afraid. If you don't take this seriously Courage _will _die and I guarantee that you will too..."

I didn't doubt that he'd put my life on the line as well. The way he had been talking had already confirmed that he was planning on killing me as well. I didn't doubt my ability to save the twit. Sure, I didn't know what was going to happen or what I would have to do to save him, but I'd rather it be me helping him then the other way around. THAT would be a true nightmare. The lack of an internet connection could be a problem but I'd still have the huge mass of information I keep stored in my databanks. I could call upon any of that if I needed it and I was fairly certain that I could handle anything thrown at me.

"Enough with the melodramatics and lets get started." I replied, growing impatient. I just wanted to get this over with even if it was unlikely that Katz was going to let us live. I'd rather just get started then sit here and listen to this idiot try and scare me.

Katz was starting to look actually disappointed. I'm sure he had probably been expecting me to start begging for my life or something stupid like that. I'm most certainly not some weak willed idiot who'd start panicking the moment my life had been threatened. I'm not about to be a mouse to this cat. I'm sure he's done these sort of things to his other victims but I'm not going to break. I may be on my way to becoming his lunch but he isn't going to get any satisfaction out of it, not so long as I can help it. If I have to play mouse then I'm going to fight all the way down his throat.

"Oh well!" He sighed. "I was hoping you'd be just a little more fun. That attitude of yours won't last long though and once it does I'll have some real fun..."

"Try me." I dared.

The cat only smiled and began pressing several keys on my keyboard. This brought up one of the many cameras that had been added to my files. What I saw almost made me cringe, not that I really could anyway. Katz began to laugh, once again nearly convincing me that maybe he really could read my thoughts.

The camera depicted Courage, knocked out on what looked like a bluff and very close to a sheer drop. If he so much as rolled over it would be the end of him. A thick black collar was clasped around his neck and his arms were tied behind his back. They looked like they were bound so tightly that I was surprised his paws hadn't gone purple from blood loss. Worse then all of this though were his eyes. They were a bloody, painful looking mess and for one terrible moment I actually thought that maybe Katz had gone and gouged his eyes out. On closer inspection it became apparent that his eyelids had been crudely sewn shut, not that that was much better then being blind.

I could see Katz doing something cruel like making it look like he'd only blocked Courage's eyesight only to eventually reveal that he did indeed gouge his eyes out. If I ever got a change to talk with the dog I'd have to ask him if he could see sunlight behind his eyelids.

"You've...blinded him?" I asked. It was less of a question and more like stating the obvious.

Katz did not reply and I began to fully grasp the situation at hand. Courage was currently lost, somewhere in the middle of nowhere, severely disabled, and very likely far from help. With his arms bound as tightly as they were he'd never be able to get out if he fell into one of the larger crevices littering the Nowhere landscape. He'd walk right into one of those huge ravines without having even the slightest clue that they were there. As I thought about it, I began to truly understand what my roll in this little game was really going to be...

Katz began to speak again and pulled me out of my thoughts. "The game is quite simple, you will be his eyes and he will be your ears. You will guide him through Nowhere and insure his survival, fail him and he will die. If he dies, so will you. He has a four day trek across Nowhere ahead of him. I've strewn cameras all across the path he is to take. You will be able to keep an eye on him with them and the collar he now wears will allow you to keep in contact with him. Neither of you will ever be blind so long as you stick to the path he is meant to take."

He stopped and leaned in closer again. "Do not even think that you can try and save him by having him leave the path he is meant to take. Your connection to him will be severed without the cameras and I guarantee you that he is far from any kind of civilization. With both of you blind he has no hope of finding a town before he dies of dehydration...or worse. If you let him stray off my path you will be the one to listen to him as he slowly dies, lost forever in the middle of nowhere. I almost wish you would! I'd love to hear all the things that dog would say as his fevered mind is slowly driven mad from the heat and hunger!"

"I get it! Don't go off the path!" I interrupted.

Katz paused for a moment to crack his neck, looking very pleased with himself again. He was acting as if he had already won.

"You will know when to finish each day by the water I have left out on the trail for him. It will keep him from dropping dead prematurely but it will not be enough to truly satisfy his thirst. You will have to force him to continue forward even when he wants to giving up, and I guarantee you that he will want to give up. One of the days coming up you will have to pick a path, one will lead him to fresh water, the other will lead him to water that I've poisoned. It will be up to you to make the correct choice."

"And how am I supposed to know which path to take?" I asked.

"I thought you were supposed to be smart?" The cat laughing. "Figure it out."

"The collar around his neck is keeping track of his vital signs. If his heart stops it will send a signal to the machine I currently have you hooked up to and it will deliver quite a nasty little shock. It's shocks are not lethal, at first, but I promise you that it will cause you to meet a very slow and painful end if you do not get that dog out alive."

I sighed inwardly. _Of course _I'll meet a sticky end. Being held hostage usually ends up like that, not that I've ever been held hostage before. I couldn't help but with slight bitterness ask. "Why does it even matter if I go through this pointless exercise? You're just going to kill both of us anyway. There's no point in doing this if we're going to lose either way."

Katz began to laugh yet again. I was really getting tired of listening to that sound. Why do idiots like him always have to do the evil laugh thing? He was laughing as if I had just said the most hilarious thing in the world.

"I am not a sore loser, machine!" The cat spoke, still chuckling to himself. "I will not kill either of you if you make it through the game. You have my word. Of course it's very unlikely that you two will make it through in the first place."

I could hardly believe that he'd just _let _Courage leave in the end, but on the other hand I was in no position to do anything about it. I was just going to have to trust this maniac's word and hope he was telling the truth.

Whatever was going to happen at the end of this game would just have to wait until then and yes, we were going to make it to the end, no questions asked. Courage was going to make it, I wasn't about to let him to fail. _I _don't do failure even if twitsdo. I was not about to let him endanger my continued existence over something so stupid as this.

Courage wasn't blind at the very least. If Katz had really wanted to spite him he would have permanently blinded him. Whether that meant he was planning on letting us go or killing us, I wasn't sure. So long as Courage wasn't permanently disabled everything would be alright in the end, for the most part.

"One final note before we begin." Katz pipped in. He pressed several keys bringing up two new camera shots.

Not good...

I mentally kicked myself for not considering this. I had not even once wondered, _what happened to Eustace and Muriel? _Well, I had just found out whether I wanted to or not. The two different cameras displayed both of them tied to chairs and their backs facing the camera. Both their heads were leaning rather oddly to the side so I assumed they were knocked out just like Courage.

"What is this?" I asked quietly.

Katz's expression became malicious once again. "On the second day Courage will come to a crossroad, IF he hasn't died yet. You will have to make a choice for him, whichever choice you make will doom one of these two to starvation. I'm sure the dog will want his Muriel back so...I hope you make the right decision...don't disappoint him."

"Only one can be saved?" I asked. I admit, even I couldn't hide the shock in my voice this time.

It was certainly a low blow. Even if Courage survived he would have to go on without one of his family members. There was a good chance that he might even go home without Muriel. How was I supposed to make that choice for him? How was I supposed to know which path to take?

The cat laughed yet again. I wished I could drown that awful sound out. His eyes fell on the camera depicting Courage and his eyes narrowed. "I figured that it was time for him to finally learn what real loss feels like. I decided that this was the perfect place for him to take the lesson. It will take a true force of will to get through this game and even more so when you know you've doomed someone you love to death. Even if he lives through this, he will still lose something irreplaceable. As for you...it's time to see if you really are as infallible as this dog seems to think. Let's see if you can make the right choices."

"Yeah right, kitty cat." I replied "I'll find a way to save them both, just you watch." I didn't really know how I would achieve this goal but I'd find a way, somehow or another.

"Oh really?" The cat asked. "We'll just have to see about that now won't we?"

"I'm going to wipe that smug expression right of your face, kitty cat. You don't scare me and you certainly don't threaten me either. I'll see to it that the dog gets through this. There's no obstacle you can put in his way that I can't get him through!"

Katz gave a nonchalant shrug. "Strong words from someone who has no idea what they're in for."

"Just try me! I'm ready for anything you can throw at me!"

"So be it. Boast all you like but Courage is about to wake up and I suggest you get ready to tell him what is about to happen."

I turned my focus back onto Courage. He was beginning to stir and an audible groan could be heard through the communications. If only that idiot knew that he was about to wake up to...

"Let the games begin!" Katz spoke happily. "Don't disappoint me...I'm looking forward to a great game..."


End file.
